588 



THE NEW BOOK OF THE DOG. 



7. The state of the Bowkls and Kidnkvs 

 should never be overlooked in disease. An 

 abundance of pale urine proves indirectly 

 that no fever is present. 



8. Loss OF Appetitk is usually, but not 

 always, present in disease; hence the fal- 

 lacy of believing that so long as a dog 

 takes his food well he is all right. 



g. Thirst alone does not indicate fever ; 

 anv large discharge, from either the in- 

 testines or the kidneys, induces it. In 

 diuresis, diabetes, and diarrhtra there is 

 thirst. 



10. Pain does not, as some people 

 imagine, always indicate inflammation. 

 There are nervous pains, and pains of 

 many different descriptions. 



11. Tenderness. — This is an important 

 point in our diagnosis, for the pain of in- 

 flammation is almost invariably of a tender 

 nature; that is, it is increased by pressure, 

 and sometimes cannot be felt without 

 pressure. 



12. Vomiting. — A dog can vomit at will, 

 or by merely eating a little grass or some 

 rough leaf, such as that of vegetable mar- 

 row. The character of the vomit is often 

 characteristic of some organic or functional 

 disorder, as the bilious, yellow-looking 

 matter dogs bring up of a morning when 

 stomach and li\cr arc out of order, or the 

 vomit mixed with blood in cases of gas- 

 Irilis or gastric catarrh. 



I,^ F.Xl'KESSION OF THE COUNTENANCE. — 



When the animal is in pain and suffering, 

 his face is pinched, he looks nervous and 

 thin; even if he does not moan, he appears 

 by his countenance to think that he is being 

 badly treated in some way. In dvspniea 

 there is a look of anxiety mingled with 

 that of terror. 



14. I''.MA( lATiON is always a bad sign, but 

 takrn alone it is not diagnostic. It is very 

 rapitl, however, in many febrile disorders, 

 snrh as distemper, for example. Emacia- 

 tion, when coming on slowly, indicates mal- 

 nutrition of the body in some way, some 

 interference w ith the blood-making process, 

 and great debility. 



15. Obesity is to ail intents a disease. 

 It must not be confounded with anasarca 

 or general dropsy of the flesh. A fat dog 

 feels firm, the flesh of a dropsical dc^g gives 

 way to the fingers — pits on pressure. 



16. Position of Bouv. — The wish to lie 

 on the belly in disease of the li\er, especi- 

 ally in some cold corner; the persistent 

 standing or sitting u[) in cases of pneu- 

 monia ; the arched back of inflammations 

 in the abdominal regions (arched in order 

 to release the muscles and prevent press- 

 ure on the painful parts); the pitiful 

 appearance of a dog in rheumatism — all tell 

 their own (ale, and speak volumes to the 

 skilled veterinarv surgeon. A slow gait is 

 indicati\i- of debility, stift'ness of rheu- 

 matism, or old age, and the curious twitch- 

 ing or jerking movements of St. \'itus's 

 Dance need oiih' be once seen to he 

 remembered. 



Simple Remedies. — Much good mav at 

 times be done to sick dogs by administer- 

 ing even seemingly simple medicines, and 

 these do all the more good if given in time, 

 for little ailments, if not seen to, often lead 

 to very serious mischief. 



Take, then, a case of simple fever. This 

 is sometimes called epltcmcral fever, be- 

 cause it is supposed only to last for about 

 a day.* Towards evening the dog will 

 seem dull and dispirited, and either refuse 

 his food or eat lazilv; his nose may not 

 be hot, nor his e\-e injected, but under the 

 tliighs greater heat than usual will be felt; 

 and if the dog's owner has been in the 

 habit of feeling his pulse in health, he will 

 now liiid it is increased in frequencx', and 

 lie will be sensible, too, of a greater heat 

 than usual on the top (if the head. Xow 

 \\hnt has to be done in this case is sim- 

 plicity itself. First give a pill, coiupounded 

 of from one-sixteenth of a grain of podo- 

 phyllin for a Toy up to half a grain or 

 more for a St. Bernard or a dog of that size, 

 mixed with from three to fifteen grains of 

 extract of tlanth-lion.f This at once; then, 

 before' slee]iing time, gi\e from a teasjioon- 

 ful up to six drachms of the soliuion of 

 the acetate of ammonia in a little water, 

 adding thereto from ten drops to two tea- 

 spoonfuls of sweet spirits of nitre. In the 

 morning give a simple dose of castor-oil — 



* In the dog its usual duration is from one to 

 five days. 



t In this treatise, wherever such words occur as 

 say, " Dose from two drachms to one ounce,"' the, 

 smaller dose has reference to a Toy dog, the larger 

 one to St. Bernard or Mastiff size. 



